


After AtB

by fedzgurl



Series: After The Bombs [3]
Category: Captain America - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Coming Out, Established Relationship, M/M, Minor Clint Barton/Natasha Romanov, Minor Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, SO MUCH FLUFF, So so much fluff, Steve and Bucky try to figure out civilian life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-10
Updated: 2016-09-15
Packaged: 2018-06-01 11:18:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,012
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6516301
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fedzgurl/pseuds/fedzgurl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Collection of ficlets based on my fic "After The Bombs," all taking place after the epilogue.  AtB is required reading for these, I'm afraid.  Tags and characters to be added as sections get added.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. November 2015

**Author's Note:**

> These probably won't be in any particular order, but I'll post the approximate month/year for each if you want to keep track on where they fall relative to the epilogue of AtB.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve just wanted to surprise Bucky with lunch. He ended up surprising the entire world with something considerably more significant.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> dedicated to the lovely @bibiliojess for all of her help with AtB and the fact that she's been having a rough time lately ♥
> 
> I was going to wait to start posting these until I had written the club scene that was going to lead into this, but since I have no idea when I'm actually going to able to write /that/ bit... here goes.

Steve ducked into the one deli in Manhattan that he’d managed to find that sold a decent pastrami on rye after his Wednesday morning life drawing class, with the intention of grabbing lunch to surprise Bucky and Stark with when he swung by Avengers Tower.  It was one of the rare weekdays that Buck had off from his own heavy class load, and he’d muttered something about heading to the Tower when Steve had left him in bed earlier that morning; whether it had to do with his arm or the physics project he’d been dreaming up during his downtime from homework Steve hadn’t bothered to ask, considering Bucky had already rolled back into his pillow and resumed snoring before he could get the question out.

At any rate, his reason for visiting didn’t matter, really - it had been a couple of weeks since either of them had seen Tony, so Steve wouldn’t mind the opportunity to catch up for a bit, or the distraction from the therapy session that they had scheduled for later that afternoon.  While Steve would admit, under duress, that the psychiatrist so far had been relatively helpful in getting his head wrapped around the idea of civilian life, it still didn’t make the sessions an enjoyable experience.

Steve stepped forward in line as an order was called up, shaking the thought off and instead putting on a normal, casual front for the workers at the register.

He shoved his hands in his pockets and shrugged his shoulders a bit as he moved along the deli counter, trying his damndest to take up as little space as possible.  Even though his beard had grown in thickly enough that his face was largely unrecognizable, Steve still felt self-conscious anytime he was out in public, constantly waiting for someone to step up to ask for a selfie or question why he’d abandoned the Avengers after Sokovia.

Thankfully he was left alone through the entirety of his wait in line, and already had the paper bag full of food under his arm on his way for the door when he spotted a disturbingly familiar face waiting near the exit.  Steve ducked his head, hoping to hide his face behind the brim of his hat, but it seemed to be a second too late - there was a flash of recognition on the reporter’s face, and by the time Steve had made the door he could hear footsteps rushing after him.  

“Excuse me!  Excuse me… Captain America?”

Steve bit back a curse, momentarily considering denying the guy’s assumption - he and Bucky had been out of the news for long enough that a ‘reported sighting’ wouldn’t make that much of a story anyway, provided he didn’t raise a scene telling the reporter off.  He paused in his escape turning deliberately with an intentionally bemused look on his face.  “Er, sorry pal - you’ve got the wrong guy.”  Steve responded easily, laying his Brooklyn accent on as thickly as possible.

It completely backfired on him.

“Right, of course,” the reporter chuckled, walking up to stand alongside Steve as if he’d been invited.  “Captain Rogers, then.”  He added smartly, extending a hand.  “My name’s John Adamson, I’m a columnist for  _ The Daily Bugle _ \- I was hoping you’d have a minute to answer a couple of questions for me?  You’ve been a hard man to get in contact with since the Battle of Sokovia.”

Steve smiled tightly, trying his hardest to keep his stage persona intact.  He could probably tell the guy to fuck off if he really wanted to - either Pepper or Hill would doubtlessly take care of the fall-out, but it hardly seemed fair to saddle either of them with extra work, especially for someone who had technically retired from being their responsibility.  “It’s just Steve, now - I’ve retired from the team,” he ended up saying instead.  “And I’m kinda in a hurry…” he gestured towards the bag under his arm, hoping that it would be enough for the reporter to take a hint.

“Oh, it’ll only be a moment,” Adamson leered.  Steve bit the inside of his cheek in frustration but stayed rooted to the spot, waiting for whatever the man had to throw at him.  “It’s just - our entertainment section has been getting a lot of interesting anonymous tips of late claiming to have seen you and Bucky Barnes out and about in Brooklyn,” he continued, pulling an iPhone out of his pocket.  “We’ve kept from publishing any of them, considering they’re nothing but hearsay so far, but I was hoping that you’d be willing to give a statement regarding the relationship between you and Sergeant Barnes.”

Steve felt like he’d had a bucket of ice water dumped over his head - after a couple of weeks of practicing in the living room of their Brownstone that had taken them both right back to 1935, Steve had finally been confident enough to take Bucky up on his suggestion of going clubbing a couple of times, and had had a surprisingly good time doing so.  Being able to spend time being sweet on Buck in public would have been enough, but to be able to do it in so welcoming an environment had damn near made the entire being frozen for seventy years schtick worth it.  The idea that people had been selling secrets about some of their most intimate moments to some tabloid rag was enough to make his skin crawl.  “Sorry, I dunno what you’re talkin’ about.” Steve said coldly, turning on his heel and starting in the direction of Avengers Tower again.

“Is there any truth to the rumor that Bucky Barnes is your boyfriend, Cap?”

Steve stopped in his tracks, gnawing on his lip.  The second before Adamson had called out to him he’d heard the distinctive tone of the video app being turned on - the bastard had riled him up and was going in for the kill, obviously hoping to get a sound bite out of Steve that would blow up the second he posted it to the Bugle’s twitter account.  

He could turn around and tactfully deny it, of course, crush the guy’s chance at taking advantage of such a headline.  Or he could turn around and crush Adamson’s actual phone and eliminate all evidence that the ‘interview’ had ever happened, although again, that would just generate negative press that no one needed.  

Swallowing down his anger Steve thought of Bucky, and how much he meant to him, and how much he’d been looking forward to surprising him with something as small as lunch to show his appreciation for putting up with Steve’s shit over the past few months.

And hell, he figured, he could do a lot better than a pastrami sandwich.

“Actually,” Steve responded, finally turning around with a coy, calculated smile.  “We prefer partners.”

For a second Steve wondered if Adamson was going to asphyxiate on his tongue - the reporter’s eyes bulged as he fumbled with his phone, gaping back and forth between Steve and the screen as if he couldn’t process what was actually happening.  Steve gave him one last smile and turned to leave again.

“Er, Captain Rogers, sir… you… you do know what the term partners means, right?  I mean, as a colloquialism today.”

It would be so easy, Steve knew, to play the bumbling old codger routine and get himself out of the situation, but Bucky deserved better than that.  Hell, he’d made it this far - there was no point in going back now.  “I meant it in every sense of the word that matters.”  Steve responded earnestly.  “Emotionally, romantically... intimately - there’s no one in the world who is more important to me than Bucky Barnes.”

The incredible thing was how much lighter he felt for having said it - Steve gave the camera one final nod, then turned and walked away, not bothering to wait and see if Adamson had any follow-ups for him; he’d already given the guy the story of his career in all likelihood, and besides that he was going to be livid if he made it to the Tower only to find that Bucky had already left.

It wasn’t until he’d asked FRIDAY to take him to whichever lab Stark was in that the enormity of what he’d done really hit Steve; along with the fact that he really, really should have asked Bucky about his wishes, first.  Buck didn’t act like he’d been at all ashamed with making his sexuality known of late, but it didn’t change the fact that Steve had just blabbed their biggest secret to the world without getting Bucky’s permission first.  He wasn’t ashamed about it, and he sure as hell hoped that Bucky wasn’t either, but it was a pretty shitty thing to have done without giving him a heads up, first.

The elevator door opened to Tony’s main lab, where an enormous projection of Steve’s face was smiling warmly at him, saying the same sound clip on loop.   _ “We prefer the term partners.  I mean it in every sense of the world that matters - there’s no one in the world who is more important to me than Bucky Barnes.” _

Tony looked up from his workbench with a broad grin, before raising his hands in front of him and beginning to clap ridiculously slowly.  “Bravo, Rogers…” he said after a few moments, “I cried, honestly - the love story of the century, finally coming out so poetically.  You guys should write a book.”

Steve opened his mouth to tell Tony off when he noticed someone coming at him from his periphery - before he could turn more than a couple of inches Bucky crashed into him at full speed, his metal hand closing roughly around the back of Steve’s neck and pulling him in for a bruising kiss.  Steve gasped as Buck’s right arm pulled them flush together, and immediately found himself with a mouthful of Bucky’s eager tongue, which Steve was all-too-happy to entertain for the time being.  At some point during their groping Steve vaguely noticed the sound of a paper bag hitting the floor, but he had no idea how long it was before they parted for air, glassy-eyed and panting as they stared at one another in a daze.

_ “I meant it in every sense of the word that matters - there’s no one in the world who is more important to me than Bucky Barnes.” _

“You know,” Tony’s voice called out, slightly muffled by the enormous bite of pastrami sandwich that he was still chewing.  “If you two wanna advance from dry humping, I  _ did _ leave a guest suite on your old floor.  Just… for your information.”

Bucky grinned like a maniac, his eyes bright and hungry and completely trained on Steve’s.  “Thanks, Tony - I think I’m gonna have to take you up on that offer for a couple’a hours.  To properly show  _ my partner _ how much I appreciate his big mouth.”

Steve flushed spectacularly, and opened his mouth to try to explain himself, but before he could get a word out Bucky’s lips were on him again, and his hands moved so that they were gripping Steve’s biceps then pushing him eagerly back into the elevator.

There would probably be a hell of a fall-out to deal with later on, a distant part of Steve’s brain supplied, but it was immediately drowned out by the need to focus on reciprocating Bucky’s urgent touches.  In the end, they both put the consequences aside for the afternoon, and instead let their actions do the talking for them.


	2. February 2016

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pepper Potts has long prided herself on being a consummate professional - but after Tony's attempt to smooth things over with Steve and Bucky leads to an incredibly personal request from the latter, her limits are put to the ultimate test.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this was originally supposed to be a prompt fill for tumblr user @laustraliedouzepoints, with the prompt being "Teach me how to play." But a certain song kept coming up on my AtB Spotify playlist and this idea wouldn't leave me alone, so I _had_ to write it... plus I've regretted from the beginning not having a chance to fit Pepper into the original fic, so here's her introduction. God bless Pepper Potts.

Pepper blinked in surprise, employing every ounce of professionalism and tact that she had ever learned along the way to becoming CEO of Stark Industries to keep a straight face while James Barnes stared back at her, red-faced and obviously mortified.

“You want me to teach you how to…”

“Not you, ma’am, not necessarily.”  Bucky cut her off, running his right hand roughly through his hair.  “Just - I dunno if you were bein’ serious or teasing Tony the other night, so if you were then I’m real sorry that I misunderstood.  Well, and that I overheard in the first place.  I just - I guess I thought, I mean, don’t tell Tony this, but Stevie was pretty… uh… worked up when we got home  after the movie, and Valentine’s Day is comin’ up, and I just thought,” he trailed off, biting his bottom lip and shrugging helplessly.

Pepper desperately swallowed down a giggle before responding.  “Firstly, I promise you that anything we talk about here is confidential - I would never tell any of yours or Steve’s - er - personal secrets to Tony if you didn’t want them to be shared,” she promised in as soothing of a voice as she could, internally commending herself when Bucky slouched in his chair in obvious relief.  “And secondly; no, it wasn’t a joke.  Claudia, really does give exotic dance lessons to her clients that are interested.  And better than that, she’s professional and very discrete and usually works with high-profile celebrities… I can have her get in contact with you, if you’d like.”

Pep was already pulling up her trainer’s information on her StarkPhone, primarily to distract herself from the absurdity of the entire situation before she really did lose it and start laughing.  The fact that this was the oddest conversation that she’d had in recent memory was saying something, considering her long-term relationship with Tony Stark; but then, he was probably to blame for this one as well.

Apparently Tony had ran his mouth at some point shortly before the Ultron fiasco and ended up offending both Bucky and Steve by implying that he was disgusted by their relationship.  Between residual guilt from that and his role in the Ultron mess, he’d been making an especially valiant attempt to make it up to the both of them; with the last olive branch having been a double date at Avengers Tower for dinner and a movie with just the four of them.

A movie which had ended up being the second Magic Mike film, much to Pepper’s dismay.

Thankfully the super soldiers had taken the entire thing in stride, and hadn’t even seemed particularly bothered by the fact that Tony’s idea of a good time had been to spend a couple of hours watching male strippers in the communal media room.  Pepper, on the other hand, had been mortified from the beginning, and took it out on him by murmuring all kinds of teasing innuendos so that Tony was completely hot and bothered and trapped from doing anything about it by the need to be polite to their guests, seeing as it had been his idea in the first place.

She hadn’t even considered the fact that their serums would have enhanced both Steve and James hearing, as well.  Or that James would overhear the part about Pepper’s trainer specializing in high-end pole dancing, if she wanted to learn from the best.

So… maybe it was karma that a couple of days later she was about to help the second-most famous American World War II veteran get set up with said lessons.

“I mean,” James stuttered, “I’m a pretty good dancer already, I suppose - I really only need a lesson or two so I don’t make a total ass of myself, y’know?  It’s uh… it’s a little different than the moves I’m used to.”

“I’m sure,” Pepper responded pleasantly, biting down on the inside of her cheek as she pulled up the necessary information.  “Well, if you’d like, I can just send her your contact information, and the two of you can work it out yourselves?”

Because of Claudia’s nature Pepper wasn’t even certain whether or not James had gone through with the lessons - until February 16th, when an enormous fruit basket (sans strawberries, of course) and bouquet of a few dozen roses showed up on her desk with a thank you card from Steve Rogers.  She tossed the card in the trash with a grin, so that Tony wouldn’t be able to try to wheedle its reason out of her, then spent the rest of the day keeping herself as busy as possible so that her mind wouldn’t be able to start picturing whatever it was that Bucky had learned that had justified sending such a lavish gift.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look, I'm not trying to imply that Pep's trainer taught Bucky a solo version of the moves to [the final dance scene of Magic Mike XXL](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hlIuHYhj1c&nohtml5=False), but... that's totally what she did. (link is pretty NSFW, in case that needs to be said)
> 
> You're welcome for that mental image ;)


	3. WHIH News Exclusive: November 2015

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Transcript of the WHIH News report following-up on Captain America's coming out announcement. Follows about a week after the first chapter of this story, when Christine Everhart was able to land an exclusive interview with Steve Rogers and his partner James Barnes, in their first appearance since Captain Rogers announced their relationship status to the Daily Bugle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case you're wondering where the hell the newscast idea came from, [Christine Everhart is an MCU pundit from Marvel's YouTube channel... ](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtJkDqZzoOFYbqwOIFn2Lng)

**WHIH Exclusive Interview: Captain America Comes Out!**

November 17, 2015

**Transcript of interview with CPT Steve Rogers, SGM James Barnes, and WHIH Newsfront Anchor Christine Everhart**

**Everheart (CE):** Captain Rogers, Sergeant Barnes - I wanted to start by saying thank you so much for taking the time to join us tonight, I’m sure you’ve had an incredible number of requests for interviews over the past week.

**Rogers (SR):** Of course, Ms. Everhart; it’s an honor to be here.  And yeah… things have been a little bit crazy over the past few days.  It’s probably a good thing that we’ve, uh, taken a break from the rest of the team.

**Barnes (JB):**  Yeah, it’s not exactly like we’re too pressed for time - I’m just confused as to why this is news in the first place. Also, for the record... Sam Wilson is Captain America. We’re just a couple of vets from Brooklyn.

**SR:** *shields his microphone and speaks to JB, inaudible*

**CE:** Well, of course the general public is going to be interested when a public figure, especially one with such rich historical influence, decides to break his silence about his personal life.  Tell me, Captain Rogers, why now?  Did the announcement have anything to do with the recent political pressure The Avengers have been under regarding the clean-up costs from the Washington DC incident?

**SR:** Please, Ma’am, just Steve is fine.  As far as what happened on the video, I didn’t exactly plan the announcement… a reporter from The Daily Bugle approached me on the street in New York with a few questions and I guess I just - decided it was good a time as any to answer him.  

**JB:** We wanted to be able to talk about our relationship on our own terms, Ma’am, rather than having the media start blabbing about it behind our backs.  We hadn’t found the right time for it yet, but - Steve had an outlet and he took it.

**CE:** Have things changed at all for you, becoming Gay Icons overnight?  And specifically for you, Steve: do you have anything to say regarding the way that your relationship with Peggy Carter has been portrayed over the years?

**JB:** *inaudible*

**SR:** I don’t know that anything’s changed, exactly.  And, uh, I can’t say anything about what it’s like to be a gay anything - I’m bisexual, so my relationship with Bucky hasn’t changed a thing about how I felt for Peggy.  And vice-versa, I guess.

**CE:** You mean to say…

**SR:**  Yes, Ma’am; I’ve always been attracted to both men and women.  And I did - develop feelings for Agent Carter while working with her during the War: she was an incredible woman who was very kind and gave me a shot when about no one else in the world was willing to; it was real easy to fall in love with a lady like that.  But… I guess I could say the same for Bucky here, too.  I’ve been in love with him for as long as I can remember - we just didn’t live in a time that made that particularly easy to come to grips with.

**CE:** So the question that most of us have been asking, if the two of you were together during World War…

**JB:**  Isn’t anyone’s business but our own, just like we said before we agreed to give this interview.

**SR:** Buck…

**CE:**  I’m sorry, Sergeant Barnes, I meant no offense to either of you - 

**SR:** No, we know that Ma’am, we’re just not interested in opening up about details right now. 

**CE:**  Fair enough.  Has the reaction of the general public surprised you at all?

**SR:** We’ve been ignoring most of it, to be perfectly honest with you.

**CE:**  It’s hard to believe that’s possible, considering the amount of attention the clip has gotten.  I’ll tell you, though, that since the shock of the news first broke its reception has become very supportive, to the point that even some of the most conservative outlets have published statements refusing to discredit your achievements as soldiers and Avengers.

**SR:** That’s… good, I suppose?  I mean, I think after the repeal of the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell Act it’s fairly clear that discrimination based on sexuality doesn’t have much place in the military when you’re at war - regardless of the relationship between Bucky and I, our men knew we were willing to lay our lives down for them and for our country, and the Howlies were willing to do the same for the both of us.

**CE:**  Yes, that has been covered well-enough over the years.  It’s actually to the point…

**JB:**  Actually, I’d like to add something to that, Ma’am… 

**CE:** Go ahead.

**JB:** I have been following the whole media mess a bit, and while it’s sweet that pundits at… certain stations… have decided they can give Stevie and I a pass because we’ve been Avengers, I think the entire sentiment behind it is a load of garbage.

**CE:**  How do you mean, Sergeant Barnes?

**JB:** It’s 2015, right?  So yeah, it’s great that FOX News has decided that they’ll forgive Captain America for wanting to be with a man, and that they’ll acknowledge that he still saved the world at least three or four times despite it, but the attitude behind their support is malarky.  No one should have to earn the right to be with the person they love: if two adults wanna be in a consenting relationship, they shouldn’t have to prove to the rest of the country that they’re  _ worthy _ of being with the partner they chose.  

**CE:**  That… so correct me if I’m wrong, but it sounds like you’re still unhappy with the political environment around your coming out, despite the fact that it’s reception has been overwhelmingly positive?

**JB:** Ma’am, the homophobia in our country might not be as blatantly violent as it was during the forties, but that sure as hell doesn’t mean it’s not alive and well today.  I guess if our coming out might help change people’s opinions on people in queer relationships then it’ll be worth the hoopla; but if we’re just gonna get a pass on account of being superheroes, then I kinda feel like we’re wasting our time here.

**SR:**  I have to agree with Bucky on that one: yes, we’re together.  Yes, we love one another, and no, it doesn’t make us any different than who we were a week ago when no one outside of our close friends and family knew about it.  But the same has gotta go for everyone else in the world.  We’re just people who were lucky enough to fall in love with someone who loves us back - their gender, or religion or race or anything else for that matter, shouldn’t play any role in it, or how society treats us.

  
**CE:**  Right, well - I appreciate your insightful statements, but I’m afraid we’ve run out of time for this segment.  Thanks so much again to Steve Rogers and James Barnes for joining us today to confirm the news of their relationship from earlier in the week - we’ll be back after the commercial break with an update on this morning’s Stock Market surge following Wakanda’s announcement on export planning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright - I have a much, much longer fluffy tie-in to the entire AtB universe that I wanted to release tonight, but given the mass hysteria over CW I'm going to hang onto it until next week. Still, I hope this will hold you guys over until then :)
> 
> As always, [ you can find me on tumblr](http://0n-y0ur-left.tumblr.com/) yelling about these two a lot - please don't hesitate to drop me a line if there are any scenes, either that were missing from the original fic or that cover the plans for the guys going forward, that you'd like to see!


	4. February 2016

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve calls on the help of a few friends to surprise Bucky for his birthday: between the serum and the fact that he's doubtlessly found the right partner, there's no excuse for him not to finally learn how to dance, anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I've been wanting to write about Steve and Bucky dancing for a while anyway, but then @tuntematonkorppi drew [this incredible piece of fan art for me](http://tuntematonkorppi.tumblr.com/post/149078329202/0n-y0ur-left-asked-for-steve-and-bucky-swing) based off of the prompt "Steve and Bucky swing dancing" and I just had to write a fill for it. I just hope that the ficlet does it justice ♥

 Steve tapped his StarkPhone gently against the kitchen island, gnawing his lip as he debated whether or not he _really_ wanted to hit send on the text that he’d painstakingly spent the past 15 minutes typing out.

On one hand, the request that laid in the message was a humiliating one, one which he would doubtlessly get ribbed about for at least the next six months - never mind the embarrassment that would come from what would doubtlessly happen if the recipient agreed to help him.  But on the other hand, he didn’t exactly have the excuses that had held up seventy years ago to justify his hesitance, and with Bucky’s birthday coming up, he badly wanted to do something special for him.  And, well - as good as Bucky was with tech stuff, he hadn’t bothered to clear his search history on the laptop they shared, meaning Steve knew full-well that he’d been looking up Swing Clubs in Brooklyn.

Turned out there were a surprising number of them.  He hadn’t brought anything up about it to Steve, but if Steve knew anything, he knew his man.  Buck would be pleased as pie if they went somewhere where the dancing was more his preferred style, as opposed to the dark, awkward grinding he’d been settling for with Steve in modern clubs of late.

(Not that either of them seemed too disappointed by what they got up to when they went out dancing nowadays.  The music was shit, yes, but the ridiculously simple dance moves were something Steve could keep up with, and it never failed to lead up to a hell of a night once they got home).

With a heavy sigh, Steve finally bit the bullet and pressed _SEND_.

 

**Text To:  Nat   Sent:  13:42**

_I need to ask you a big favor, meet me for coffee Thursday AM?  We can get those tie-dye bagels if you want._

 

For as much as Natasha and Sam (and Clint and Pietro and Tony, for that matter) all liked teasing Steve and Bucky for all of the quirky fads that seemed to call Brooklyn home, they sure as hell seemed to like the weird fad food creations that never failed to confuse Steve.  That said, strange as he found them all, Steve wasn’t above using them to his advantage.

 

**Text From:  Nat   Received: 13:46**

_sure, don’t forget the funfetti cream cheese.  meet in the park by the VA at 10?_

 

Steve decided he didn’t want to know how Natasha knew when and where his therapy sessions were for the week.

 

**Text To:  Nat   Sent:  13:46**

_Sounds good.  Please don’t tell Buck_

 

**Text From:  Nat    Received: 13:47**

_include the biggest vanilla latte you can find and you’ve got a deal ;x_

 

Steve sighed and closed his message app - he was in for a long morning.

All the same, he kept up his end of the bargain that Thursday, going out of his way to pick up breakfast in Williamsburg before making his way towards the Navy Yard.  He’d gone through his regular morning routine with Bucky, so as not to raise any suspicion about his morning plans, but the fare at The Bagel Store was so wild that he couldn’t help grabbing a second breakfast for himself, as well as one of the crazy blue bagels for Bucky (he liked blueberry, and had gotten overly-invested in watching Breaking Bad in the weeks immediately after they’d retired - plus Steve knew that the evidence that he’d left the house during the day to go other than the VA would make Buck’s day).  

Unsurprisingly, Nat was already waiting for him at their meeting spot, looking surprisingly comfortable in a sleek woolen peacoat and huge fur hat, despite the chill in the air and snow on the ground.  Steve almost envied her, especially when his chunky knitted monstrosity of a scarf got stuck in his beard.

“I’m starting to think that Sam is onto something when it comes to this hipster thing, Rogers,” she said dryly, taking the coffee cup he handed her with a teasing smirk.

“He probably is,” Steve conceded as he dug around in the bag and grabbed out the ridiculous bagel she’d requested.  “But the stupid knitting is something to do and the beard helps hold heat in on my face,” he shrugged as he reached into the bag to find his own order - the cragels had looked too interesting to pass up, dammit - and decided to leave off the fact that the longer he went without shaving, the crazier the addition seemed to drive Bucky nuts in the best possible way.  “I don’t understand how your cheeks aren’t freezing in this wind,” he added, abruptly steering his mind away from _that_ train of thought.

“I grew up in Russia,” Natasha replied, taking a dainty sip out of the coffee cup that was bigger than her head.  “Your winters here really aren’t bad.  But,” she added, raising an eyebrow at Steve, “I don’t think you texted me to talk about the weather.”

“Uh, no,” Steve admitted around the enormous bite of breakfast sandwich he’d just taken, feeling his ears heat beneath his hat as he shook his head and swallowed.  “No, I - I wanna surprise Buck for his birthday, but I’m gonna need help doing it.”

“Oh?”  Nat asked simply, her eyes wide and curious in a way that made her bagel look even more ridiculous as she took another bite of it.  

Steve took a sip of his own coffee to steel his nerves.  “Yeah - it’s coming up in a few weeks.  And… don’t laugh,” he added quickly, “but I want to take him dancing.  Properly.”

“I thought the two of you were already going out dancing,” she responded casually, “the gossip rags certainly like to talk about it on a regular basis.”

Steve rolled his eyes, knowing exactly which spreads she was talking about - truly they’d only been out to a couple of clubs, despite the way the tabloids covered it.  Tony had a field day with the coverage every damned time.  “We have, and they’re a good enough time, but clubs aren’t the same,” he explained.  “Bucky used to love going to dance halls, and he was a hell of a dancer.  He tried to teach me so I wouldn’t embarrass him on double dates…”

“I sincerely doubt that was his reasoning,” Natasha interrupted in an undertone.

“... but I was hopeless, when I was - you know.”  Steve continued on.  “And then I quit even trying - it used to be my thing, that I was waiting for the right partner.”  He stared down at the wrapped sandwich in his hand, picking off a piece of the flaky pastry as he shrugged again.  “I know I’ve got him now, and I’m _hoping_ that I won’t be quite such a disaster now that I’ve got a body that works, but I really wanna surprise him by already learning ahead of time.”

“And you do realize that I’ve been classically trained in ballet, right?” Natasha asked - her smirk was still teasing, but Steve could tell from the change in her voice that she was taking a little more pity on him after hearing the story.

“So learning and teachin’ me some swing should be a snap, right?”  Steve asked brightly, while silently begging anyone willing to listen that Nat would say yes.  Realistically, Steve could _probably_ teach himself a few things - but he preferred the idea of proper lessons, so that he could ultimately sweep Bucky off his feet and impress him, as Bucky was always wont to do for Steve.

He felt the smile fading from his face as Natasha continued to survey him coolly, chewing her breakfast in silence.  He was about to speak up again, when she finally put him out of his misery.  “Alright,” she said impassively, although Steve knew her well enough to catch the way her lips quirked as she reached for the phone in her coat pocket.  “I’ll see what I can do.  In the meantime, I’m going to send you a couple of video tutorials so you can start some of the basics on your own - Bucky has classes during the day anyway, right?”

Steve nodded and went for his own phone so quickly that he nearly fumbled what was left of his breakfast sandwich; in the end he was able to save it, feeling all the more foolish when he realized he didn’t even need the damned thing to begin with - it wasn’t as if Natasha didn’t already have his contact information.  “Yeah,” he responded, trying to cover his mistake, “every day except for Fridays, but even then he’s either in one of his school labs or working on somethin’ with Tony, so I’ve got plenty’a time to practice.”  Steve had an art class and counseling sessions of his own, but still hadn’t found much to occupy the rest of his days with, much to Bucky’s chagrin.  

“Lovely,” Natasha replied with a grin, wrapping up what was left of her bagel and tapping around on her StarkPhone’s calendar.  “I’ll send you the videos this afternoon - work on them for the next couple of days, then let’s plan on meeting in one of the training rooms at the tower Monday afternoon.  As long as I don’t get called away for anything we should be able to get a couple of hours of work in.”

“Sounds great,” Steve said, nodding and fiddling with his own phone, while simultaneously stamping down the guilt that went along with the thought of Nat having to cancel on him because she was off with the Avengers, while he sat at home in New York and tried to learn how to jitterbug.  

He barely had finished the thought before a sharp elbow caught him in the side - no matter how long he knew Natasha Romanoff, her ability to read his mind would always creep Steve out.  

“And remember to wear something comfortable,” she added as an aside, before gathering up her coffee cup and trash, “we’ll work with you in dapper clothes eventually, but for the start let’s keep the distractions as minimal as possible.  Stick to something easy to move in, and make sure to bring dancing shoes with you.

“Will do,” Steve promised, jumping off of the bench as Natasha stood.  “And thanks so much, Nat, I owe you.”

“We’ll see how much,” she replied with a smile, before leaning in to give Steve a hug.  It lasted only a moment, before she was making her way towards the subway, disappearing into the crowd in that unnerving way she had practically turned into an artform.  Steve watched her go, before choking down the last of his cold breakfast and making his way across the street to see his counselor.

He watched the videos as he’d been asked, and spent his free hours on Friday while Buck visited with Tony in Manhattan to work on the steps as he’d promised, trying not to feel too ridiculous as he did his best to move as the videos instructed, watching himself awkwardly in the bedroom window.  When Monday morning rolled around he showed up to the Tower for his first lesson with Natasha at 10:00 on the dot.  The usual sparring mat that made up the majority of the training room she’d suggested had been rolled into the corner, revealing a huge open wooden floor, laid out in front of an entire wall of mirrors on one side and a gorgeous view of the city behind them.  Steve immediately felt ridiculous and out of place in his running pants and t-shirt when he noticed the dress and tights combination Natasha was wearing as he pulled her hair up into a tight bun - but if she was at all bothered by Steve’s casual attire, she didn’t show it.

“You watched the videos?  And practiced?” She asked simply, stepping up in front of the mirrors of what could easily have been the swankiest dance studio in all of New York.

“I did,” Steve confirmed, laughing humorlessly.  “Not sure how well I did with them, but…”

“FRIDAY, please cut the video feed I’m sure Stark has set up for the gym,” Natasha called over him, cutting off the self-depreciating joke that Steve had been setting up for.

“I’ve already overwritten the protocol, Agent Romanoff,” FRIDAY’s voice confirmed from a corner of the room.  “Would you like me to initiate the music sequence you programmed?”

“That’d be great,” Nat responded with a smile, turning so that she was facing Steve.  “Alright,” she continued as Benny Goodman’s band started up over the gym’s speakers, “let’s start with the basics.”

Steve swallowed thickly and moved into starting position, then did his damndest to remember the videos he’d worked through as he followed her lead.  Nat was kind enough to walk him through each of the basic steps for the Charleston and the Lindy hop, watching them both in the mirror as they worked side by side, but the second she’d determined that he was ready to actually dance as a pair she demanded that he take the lead.

“Er… this was usually Bucky’s role when we used to practice,” Steve admitted after flubbing their first go-round, feeling his cheeks heat up like a flare as he admitted as much.

“All the better to really impress him with, then,” Natasha said archly, pulling him back into position and waiting for his lead.  “Plus, it’ll be more fun if you’re both challenged, right?  Something tells me Barnes is a smart enough guy that he’ll be able to learn the follow steps easily enough.”

Steve could hardly argue her point - and he knew damned well that Bucky was a good enough dancer to boot.  With a frown he got back to work, trying even more diligently to remember each of the steps as they walked through different songs, gradually increasing the tempo and difficulty level as they went.  It didn’t go as badly as the disasters he had remembered in the thirties: Steve never onced stomped on Natasha’s feet (a mistake he was sincerely terrified of making - it had been mortifying when he’d stomped on dames’ toes in the past, but even tough as Nat was Steve wouldn’t forgive himself if his clumsy ass legitimately hurt her), and for the most part he was able to keep up with the steps, going through the basic Jitterbug and Charleston without much trouble, and even starting in on East Coast Swing moves and the Shag.  He still managed to feel gawky and awkward, though, and Nat chided him more than a couple of times about being stiff and off-beat. 

“I think that’s about enough for one day,” she said as the Glenn Miller band faded out.  

Steve nodded in agreement, pushing his sweaty bangs back off of his head and doing a doubletake when he looked to the clock on the gym’s wall - he had no idea how they’d passed a full two hours so quickly.  “So - you think it’s a lost cause?” He asked playfully, not able to bring himself to look her in the eyes.  He kicked himself the second he’d said it, knowing that it gave away far too much about his nerves.

Natasha snorted inelegantly.  “No, I think you’ve got a shot, once you get out of your head and stop worrying so much about it,” she added, not unkindly.  

“Sorry,” Steve muttered, knowing he was being overly dramatic but unable to totally turn it off, “I guess it’s just hard to forget my track record.  You’d think that having a body that can do damn-near anything would make this easier, but…”

“Oh, your body isn’t the issue,” Natasha cut in, “it’s definitely your head.  If you’d stop focusing so much on the steps you’d have the dances down in an afternoon, no problem.”

Steve opened his mouth to argue that she was being far too generous in her assessment, but Natasha barrelled on.  “Think about it this way,” she stated as she slipped her shoes off, “dancing isn’t that much different than sparring, really - you know your own strengths, and you know your partner, then it’s just a matter of finding the right rhythm together and moving forward to make each other better.”  

And, well… that made a hell of a lot of sense.  And made it sound a lot less onerous.  “So you’re saying I just need to imagine it’s a fight and I’ll get it.”

“I figured you were doing as much already,” she teased as she tucked her dance shoes into a bag.  “I mean you should relax and have fun with it, which I figured was why you wanted to learn in the first place - if you’d stop thinking about the steps you’d learn them faster and be a better dancer for it.”

Steve had no idea what the hell she meant by that but he let it slide.

“At any rate, keep working on those steps and trying to make them more fluid,” Natasha finished, grabbing her coat from its hook on the wall and sliding into a pair of boots.  “Have some fun while you practice; I’ll see you here again on Thursday?”

“Sure, I’ll see what I can do,” Steve answered, finally pulling his own shoes off as she made her way out of the room, then mulling over her advice all the way home.

Steve did have some fun during the week at least, especially as he felt more comfortable with the steps and required less and less thought.  Switching his music choices helped as well; for as much as he preferred the old standards, Bucky’s weird collection of modern electro-swing spared him the intrusive memories of little Steve getting embarrassed one Friday night after another, while still staying close enough to the real thing that it didn’t throw off what little rhythm he had.

The second lesson with Natasha was worlds apart from the first - Steve kept her words close to heart, focusing instead on the music and the idea of sparring with her (an activity that had become as familiar as breathing) instead of dancing; and somehow managed to fly through all of their steps, barely breaking as they switched songs and styles for a solid forty minutes.

“Good!” She laughed as he pulled her in close for a final spin, her green eyes bright and mischievous as Steve felt himself grin like an idiot.  “I think you’ve got the steps down, now - let’s see about throwing some aerials into the mix.”

The throws and flips were surprisingly easy, although that probably had to do with the fact that Nat did most of the work on them, telegraphing when she wanted to add them into a sequence of steps and more or less throwing her weight around Steve, leaving his sole responsibility to make sure that she made it back to the ground in a controlled manner and stepping her into their next move.  While he was thankful for it, he knew that it was probably too good to last.

“I’ll send you a few videos to study over the weekend,” Natasha said once they’d finished for the day, already tapping away on her phone.  “Try to study them, I’m going to make your job considerably more difficult on Monday.”

Steve was glad for the easy assignment; he hadn’t been sure how he would keep his work up with Bucky around over the weekend, but sitting around and watching videos on his StarkPad was easy enough while Buck worked on assignments and watched his own documentaries.  In the end it was close enough to their usual weekends together that Steve was relatively certain that his secret was still safe.

He entered the gym in Avengers Tower on Monday morning with only a mild sense of dread as he wondered what Natasha had meant about making things more difficult for him - then frowned in confusion when he found Nat in a plain set of gym clothes instead of her dance gear from the previous two lessons, and Clint in an awkward purple leotard stretching in front of the mirror.

“Cap!” He shouted with a grin as Steve stepped slowly into the room, toeing out of his street shoes and trying to act natural.  “Are you ready to cut a rug?  Nat said you needed someone to step in and swing with you.”

“Yeah, hey Clint,” Steve answered, shooting Natasha a questioning glance.  “And I sure am - I didn’t know you were a dancer, too.”

“I mean, I was basically raised by circus performers,” Clint said with a flippant wave, “you learn all kinds of weird shit on the road.”

“And I figured it would help you to get practice with someone a bit more like your actual partner,” Natasha added lazily, raising her eyebrow in an obvious challenge to the looks that Steve had already sent her way.

“No, yeah.  I mean - that sounds swell,” Steve corrected himself, pulling on his dance shoes and lacing them down before he could say anything else that was too stupid.  The plan lasted as long as it took him to tie his shoes and make his way to where Barton was standing in front of the mirror.  “Er…  are you gonna be able to hear the music well enough to follow the steps?”

Thankfully, Clint just laughed at the question.  “Yeah, FRIDAY’s wired to play the music straight into my aides,” he said, tapping the purple buds in his ears, “so I’ll hear the same things you do.”

Steve nodded along, shifting his weight awkwardly from side to side before forcing himself into starting position, before he actually combusted from embarrassment.  It was stupid, he knew - dancing with Clint was no different than dancing with Nat, but somehow pulling another team member in made him feel jittery.

“What’re we startin’ with?” Clint asked, stepping up and grabbing Steve’s hands like it was the most natural thing in the world.

Natasha called out to FRIDAY and 'Woodchopper’s Ball' started over the speakers.

“Lindy Hop,” Steve answered, sounding far more confident than he actually felt, before triple-stepping to the side and taking it away.

Dancing with Barton was definitely a different beast than swinging Natasha had been: the guy had decent enough moves and kept the beat considerably better than Steve had been anticipating, and he was surprisingly good at following Steve’s lead, but it still took Steve a couple of songs to get used to looking down and seeing a male partner.  Plus, the dynamics of swinging a man were completely different, and when they were comfortable enough with each other to start adding aerials, the moves were completely on Steve’s end to control.

He only ended up tossing Clint once, though, when they both tried to get too fancy in the middle of a stroll and Steve had called out “Around the world,” but apparently had failed to say it loudly enough that Clint had caught it - ending in the archer giving a startled yelp when Steve went to flip him into the air, surprising Steve enough that he put far more force into the throw than necessary and flung Barton across the gym.

Natasha swore up and down that she’d only been sending a text when it had happened.  Steve knew damned well that the entire team would end up getting in a SnapChat, eventually.  Barton just shook it off and stepped back up for more.

“Maybe work on knowing your own strength,” Nat teased him as they parted, but between her smirk and Clint’s bark of laughter Steve knew that there were no hard feelings - and that he just might be good enough to end up pulling his plan off, after all.

He wasn’t exactly surprised to find a third person in the gym again when he returned for his last lesson on Thursday, but the site of Yelena Belova turning from her conversation at the wall of mirrors with Natasha was still enough to give Steve pause.  Although he hadn’t exactly worked with the second Widow the women had sparred enough times with Steve and Bucky that he felt like he could at least call her a good acquaintance, and over the months since she’d officially joined the New Avengers Belova had done nothing but prove her value and loyalty to the team.  All the same, he had to force down his instinctive wariness as he made his way into the room.

“Agent Belova,” he said as pleasantly as possible, nodding as he went about his ritual of changing into his dress shoes.

“Captain Rogers,” she responded with a nod.  “Natalia tells me that you need practice with a dance partner who’s strong,” she continued, answering the question that must have been obvious on his face, “it’s been many years since I’ve danced this style, but I figure I can be of help today.”

“No offense, Steve,” Natasha added sardonically, “but I know how you and Bucky like to switch, and I didn’t exactly feel up to throwing you around for two hours.”

Steve blushed horribly, unable to ignore the obvious innuendo in Natasha’s voice - how the hell she had worked out what they got up to in the bedroom was totally beyond him, but he didn’t want to give her the gratification of knowing that she’d gotten it right.  Besides that, he _had_ said at the beginning that he had always been the follow when they had danced in the past… it made perfect sense that he learn how to dance both parts.

“That’s fair,” he said once he’d gathered himself enough to trust his voice, making his way to the middle of the room and ignoring the look that the Widows shared.  “Just forgive me if I step on your toes, Yelena; I haven’t practiced followin’ since the winter of thirty-nine.”  

“Then we’ll learn together,” Belova answered with a smirk, stepping closer and resting her hand against his hip as the music started up.  “I doubt we’ll have much trouble.”

She was more or less correct: it took Steve the better part of four songs before he’d really started getting comfortable dancing with her, and even then he still flubbed his steps from time to time, forgetting to switch his footing and stepping on Yelena’s toes as they simultaneously attempted to lead.  Thankfully, she was both strong and patient enough to take them in stride, moving him back into position and continuing on as if nothing had happened.

Natasha, on the other hand, wasn’t quite as forgiving.

“C’mon, Rogers,” she sighed as she restarted ‘In The Mood’, “I know you’re better than that - quit overthinking it and dance!”

He had half a mind to point out that her directions were considerably easier said than done, but before Steve could say anything Yelena lead them into a stroll, pulling Steve along as she wanted and tossing him at the end of the verse.  He came out of the knickerbocker like it was nothing, landing on his feet and immediately going into the next rock step, and just like that following the dance was the last thing on Steve’s mind.  Instead his head was too busy marveling over the easy way that his dance partner had manhandled him, which immediately took his imagination down the path of imagining Bucky doing the same, just tossing Steve like he was nothing then pulling him back into cuddle position…

He had no idea how they got through the rest of the dance, but Steve found himself even more convinced that his plan was a brilliant one by the time the music finally cut.  He had to guess that both Natasha and Yelena knew his mind was wandering, as they cut the lesson short soon after.

“You’ll be fine,” Nat promised, going up on her toes to give Steve a hug and a knowing wink once she parted, “just let us know when your first competition is - I want to get credit for making a new star.”

“We won’t be competing any time soon,” Steve said with a huff, rubbing the back of his neck as he felt it flush.  It was true: judging by the way his mind was still wandering, Steve wasn’t even sure that they should be dancing in public at all, at least not in the immediate future - but at the same time he wasn’t going to rule it out completely.  A couple of weeks earlier he would have said it was a ridiculous suggestion, but now the idea of being able to show Bucky off, and the hope that Buck might want to do the same was a little too heady to ignore completely.

Natasha hummed knowingly as she made her way towards the door, following in Yelena’s wake.  “In that case, if you guys ever want to double on a date, let me know… Clint hasn’t shut up about heading out as well.”

Steve laughed and promised he would be in touch: that much was easy, at least, and something to legitimately look forward to - but first he wanted a few nights of enjoying Bucky’s company on his own.

The next day Steve was so excited to share his progress with Bucky that he could barely wait for the evening; as soon as Buck had headed off to his lab Steve found himself too anxious to sit still, pacing around the house a few dozen times before finally forcing himself outside to burn off his nervous energy.  He ended up finding himself in a thrift shop in DUMBO, but he got a pair of suspenders that both fit and would match one of his better pairs of trousers as well as a snazzy vintage tie which was too good to pass on, regardless of how much he knew Sam would razz him once he go a load of it.

He made it home an hour before Buck was due to finish up his project and immediately changed into his outfit, going so far as to slick his hair back with pomade before standing back and admiring himself in the mirror.  Steve wasn’t sure that it was ever going to be completely natural, looking at his tall, broad reflection and accepting that the hunk looking back was actually _him_ , but he couldn’t help preening all the same: the hair wasn’t perfect, and his pants were a little too tight and rode a little too low.  Even so, Steve couldn’t help but think he looked pretty damned swell, and had no doubt that Buck would feel the same.

He made his way downstairs to wait for Bucky to get home, playing around on his phone as his foot tapped nervously against the carpet of the living room floor.  The act lasted less than ten minutes, before Steve changed his mind about the outfit and hauled himself back their bedroom to change: he didn’t want to give the surprise away right off the bat, and Bucky had a habit of changing into loungewear as soon as he got home from classes.  They could break the suits out when they went to a proper hall; for tonight, Steve would let his hard work speak for him instead.

He was in the middle of a game of Words Against Friends versus Sam when the front door _finally_ opened, and it was all Steve could do to act natural as Bucky made his way through the house, stopping in the living room to drop a kiss on the crown of Steve’s head.

“Your day go alright?” Steve asked nonchalantly, moving just enough to steal a proper kiss before going back to his game.

“It was fine,” Bucky conceded, shifting his backpack further up his shoulder, “I think the kids in my physics lab are finally starting to get the importance of learning thermo…”

“You didn’t light anything on fire, did ya?” Steve asked cautiously - it wasn’t like Bucky to be careless in a lab, even one as elementary as the introductory physics course he was taking, but Steve also knew how bored he was with the course, and how much time he’d been spending complaining to Stark about it.

“Course not!” Bucky responded lightly as he made his way up the stairs.  

Steve wasn’t one hundred percent convinced with the answer, but he also figured it wasn’t the time to pursue it.  As soon as he’d heard Buck’s footsteps make their way into the bedroom upstairs Steve was in motion, easily moving all of the furniture to the sides of the room, leaving the place open enough that the two of them would be able to properly swing without busting anything.  He dropped the needle on the gramophone as he heard Bucky come back down the stairs, turning with a grin as Benny Goodman started up and the footsteps stopped on the landing.

Bucky stood there with a grin starting to pull at the corners of his mouth, looking around the room in confusion.  “What’s this?”

“Somethin’ I’ve been workin’ on for you,” Steve admitted, holding his hand out and hoping that his ears weren’t as red as they were warm.  “C’mon, jerk, don’t leave me hanging here like a crumb - get down here and let’s get hot!”

That earned a surprised laugh, and the next thing he knew Bucky was busting it across the room, shuffling to a stop as if it were part of an act as he held his hand out for Steve to take.  “You leadin’?” He asked teasingly.

“If you think you can follow,” Steve answered with a smirk, grabbing his hand and swinging him around with all of the false bravado that he could muster - and just like that they were off, falling into sync and Lindying even better than Steve had through all of his practicing, even better than he’d remembered watching Bucky dance ages ago in the dark dancehalls that seemed to practically be his home.

Nat was damned right about dancing being like sparring: with the right partner, it all flowed so effortlessly that Steve couldn’t believed he’d been so stressed about it.  Bucky’s grin was so blinding as they swung around the room that Steve couldn’t even feel put-out by the look of obvious surprise in his eyes.

As they made their way back across the room on the final pass of the song Steve muttered a warning, before lifting Bucky up and tossing him around, pulling off an Around the World even as they both laughed like idiots.  They came back together in step as the music faded out, but Steve was too busy getting caught up in the look on Bucky’s face to start the steps to the next song.  “You learned that for me?” Bucky finally asked, surprisingly breathless for how little they’d actually exerted themselves.

“I mean,” Steve started with a shrug, “I can only use the excuse so many times, right?  Nat helped, I just… I thought it’d be nice if we could go out dancing properly.  I, uh - I got us a spot reserved at one of the swing clubs on Saturday, if you wanna go.”

Truthfully he had a whole day planned out for Bucky’s birthday, but the rest of the surprise could wait.

“Course I wanna go, Steve,” Bucky answered quietly, leaning closer into Steve’s chest as they waited for the next song to start.  “I’ve been dreamin’ for years of having the chance to show my guy off…”

Steve chuckled at that, pushing gently away from Bucky as the music picked back up then immediately pulling him in with an inside spin, wrapping his arm around Buck’s waist and dipping him low.  He waggled his eyebrows suggestively, feeling stupidly proud for the move - but instead of laughing like Steve had expected, Bucky gaped at him for a beat.  His next move was all a single, fluid motion - before Steve could blink Bucky’s lips were on his, and he vaguely noticed the cool metal fingers of Buck’s left hand grabbing hold of the front of his t-shirt.  Next thing he knew, he was being tugged desperately down to the floor, but he was already too worked up by the change of events to get much out of the jumbled endearments that Bucky muttered between rough, ecstatic kisses.

In the end it was a few hours before they actually go back to dancing again, and they’d both earned a few rug burns for their troubles.  

It was entirely worth it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always you can [find me on tumblr](http://0n-y0ur-left.tumblr.com/) if you want to join me in yelling about these two. And I'm always open for prompts if there are other timestamps or AtB remixes that you'd be interested in seeing in the future!

**Author's Note:**

> You can [find me on tumblr](http://0n-y0ur-left.tumblr.com/), where I mainly yell about these two. Also, if there is a scene from AtB that you'd like to see remixed or any particular outtakes that you're interested in, or a specific "future" question that you'd like to see answered, don't hesitate to send me a message!!


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